Without vision, the people perish

President Trump’s executive orders rescinding environmental laws, policies, and the FEMA cuts are deeply disturbing. Denying climate change through such actions flies in the face of evidence that 2024 was the hottest year recorded, with the seventh most active hurricane season. Wildfires are currently raging in North and South Carolina. Firestorms such as those in California, floods in Texas, and fluctuating global temperatures all impact crops, raise food prices, and increase the cost of living. Nature’s unpredictability and the new flood of executive orders canceling food orders cause great distress for farmers and residents in Monroe County.

As food becomes scarce and more expensive, the world’s peatlands- swamps, fens, the Earth’s kidneys- will be increasingly used for food production. These lands. which are carbon gas emitters, are not protected by law. Draining and plowing them for agriculture releases colossal amounts of carbon dioxide. If this continues, the world’s peatlands will become the fourth biggest carbon polluter after China, the US, and India, escalating the climate crisis. The EPA cuts will lessen protection of these lands in the U.S.

President Jimmy Carter brought a new environmental vision to the U.S. fifty years ago, when ' climate change' was barely known. He believed that if you care for the land, it will care for you. Carter’s administration passed laws to conserve energy and set energy standards. He also created the Department of Energy to seek alternative energy sources. As a result, fuel consumption declined by 10% from 1979-1983. Carter also installed solar panels on the White House roof, demonstrating an alternative fuel source. Though he was scorned for his efforts by some, Carter was pushing the country to see a future beyond fossil fuels.

The vision of safeguarding planetary life led to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, an international treaty, with 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming as the goal. Now, the target has shifted to a 2.5 °C. Agriculture and transportation, the two greatest carbon emitters, must drastically cut emissions and implement massive changes in their operations to reach this goal.

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, passed by the U.S. House and Senate, embraced the vision of transitioning to clean energy for future generations. This legislation funded programs and incentives to accelerate the shift to clean energy. As a result, new companies sprang up, environmental non-profits gained momentum, wind and solar farms increased, electric vehicle (EV) production increased, and computer chip manufacturing returned to the US.

By again removing the U.S. from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, President Trump has deepened the crisis and damaged the country’s global reputation. The push for 'drill baby drill' as a cheaper oil policy, declaring 'energy emergencies,' and positioning fossil fuel as the sole energy of the future is deadly. It exacerbates global warming. Meanwhile, solar and wind now account for 92% of the world’s new electricity plants, and China is sweeping the EV market.

Curtailing U.S. electric vehicle production will stymie years of research, increase gas emissions, and decrease its international market share. However, Dr. Michael E. Webber, Professor of Engineering at the University of Texas, wrote in a February New York Times article that Trump is too late to thwart the move toward alternative energy sources, which occurred over the last twenty years. Much of the clean energy investment flowing from the Infrastructure Act has been invested in rural states.

Political leaders are beginning to react as carbon reduction funding is slashed and their constituents lose jobs. However, the situation is growing dire. Michigan recently had $21 billion for clean energy rescinded or frozen by the Trump administration, including $400 million for consumer energy rebates and $500 million for electric battery support. A vigorous response is warranted.

Politicians must embrace a vision where all planetary life flourishes. Earth, our common home, demands our attention and care. We must write, speak out, and advocate for changes that reduce gas emissions in our communities, our states, and the world.

Sister Janet Ryan, IHM, is a member of Stronger Together Huddle, a group engaged in supporting and promoting the common good of all. She resides in Monroe and can be reached at mcneil102@icloud.com